• The Cycling News forum is still looking to add volunteer moderators with. If you're interested in helping keep our discussions on track, send a direct message to @SHaines here on the forum, or use the Contact Us form to message the Community Team.

    In the meanwhile, please use the Report option if you see a post that doesn't fit within the forum rules.

    Thanks!

Team Visma LAB

Page 24 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
You don't know what was inside that bidon.

To me it's puzzling what they're in but in 20 years I follow the sport I don't recall seeing anything so stupidly absurd as the Belgian Hulk today. After 17 all-out stages, attack on KM 0, multiple pulls and attemps to get in the breakaway, little sprint in the intermediate, pulling constantly on Aubisque and Spandelles, attack on top of Spandelles and than this effort to Hautacam. All this while appearing he was everywhere giving his max.

It seems they are into something very powerful and with quick response that maybe they can top up during races to provide extra boost.
Haha, if Thomas would have suddenly caught Pogacar we at least would have known their secret is in their drinks.

And yes, indeed. We are discussing of Pogacar was too aggressive early on and tanked because of that. WvA just goes solo on half of the stages and no questions arise?
 
2015-18 Dumoulin would have finished with Thomas on a good day today. The Jumbo program - and the UAE one, for that matter - is on a different level entirely than anything seen in the 2010s.
I can honestly see a world were Big T was on a conservative program of testosterone, corticoids and some microdosed Epo and he wasn't ready to hop on the nuclear program by Jumbo which possibly includes multiple BBs, perfluorocarbons and god knows how many research chemicals.
 
  • Like
Reactions: CJCycling
wanna see WVA do this next year. I think people might be upset

3LSSBXR.png
 
I can't really compare with the nineties. I was a child/ teenager then. Among those I have seen as an adult van Aert is the most ridiculous. Of course someone like Froome had a much bigger transformation, but in absolute terms - Wout ain't human anymore.
 
  • Like
Reactions: gunara
Haha, if Thomas would have suddenly caught Pogacar we at least would have known their secret is in their drinks.

And yes, indeed. We are discussing of Pogacar was too aggressive early on and tanked because of that. WvA just goes solo on half of the stages and no questions arise?
What do you mean "no questions arise"? Van Aert has a very busy clinic thread, with plenty of questions asked, and rightfully so. Same thing in this very thread.
 
let's see,start in denmark.checked.vist uci hq.checked.danish winner.checked.on aserious note.i was just a kid when riis happened.and then came festina.and then us postal and lance.it will never end,the game is too high for uci to let it crumble.only when the question will start to rise..we will see something
 
let's see,start in denmark.checked.vist uci hq.checked.danish winner.checked.on aserious note.i was just a kid when riis happened.and then came festina.and then us postal and lance.it will never end,the game is too high for uci to let it crumble.only when the question will start to rise..we will see something

Cheaters are probably miles ahead.

The ones that are caught are simply stupid.
 
What do you mean "no questions arise"? Van Aert has a very busy clinic thread, with plenty of questions asked, and rightfully so. Same thing in this very thread.
In the RR forum it was rarely to never discussed that WvA might waste energy. For Pogacar its used as one (maybe even main) reason why he lost. I think thats quite funny.

In the clinc both have a thread for very good reasons.
 
In the RR forum it was rarely to never discussed that WvA might waste energy. For Pogacar its used as one (maybe even main) reason why he lost. I think thats quite funny.

In the clinc both have a thread for very good reasons.
Right but Wout is not riding GC. It doesn't matter if he loses 20 minutes here and there. Pogacar probably lost the race when he ran out of gas on Granon.
 
Yeah. Not much to say, really. Today was way too much.

However, when it comes to framing the rides kudos to Jumbo for just cynically going for it: no asinine propaganda about revolutionary preparation methods, pillows, etc, and no audience of flag waving, gullible true believers either. When sky took the stage, these threads were full of people arguing that Brits don't dope because of their high morals. Not much of that this time around.

For a moment during the Granon stage it was somewhat exciting when it wasn't yet known that Vingo is just the strongest. Cheers for slaying the darling boi, though.
 
  • Like
Reactions: red_flanders
Van Aert was absurd yet again and to think that he was allegedly doubtful for the Tour with a knee injury after missing the Belgian nationals.
Stop believing all the bullsh*t Jumbo and Van Aert' camp are trying to feed us on a regular basis.
Last year they said he couldn't train for the mountains and then he proceeded to win the double Ventoux stage and finish top20 in GC.
 
What strikes me is how confident they are showing their strength day in, day out.

It used to be good practise in cycling to throw in some sandbagging performances here and there when you are dominant to calm down the critics.
Hincapie talks about on his show and it was quite obvious during the Sky era aswell.

Jumbo and especially WvA don't seem to give a crap about doing unbelieveable rides day after day.

The only explanations i can come up with are:

  1. They are 100% confident whatever they are on is undetectable
  2. They have some weird agreement with the Uci about not getting caught
 
What strikes me is how confident they are showing their strength day in, day out.

It used to be good practise in cycling to throw in some sandbagging performances here and there when you are dominant to calm down the critics.
Hincapie talks about on his show and it was quite obvious during the Sky era aswell.

Jumbo and especially WvA don't seem to give a crap about doing unbelieveable rides day after day.

The only explanations i can come up with are:

  1. They are 100% confident whatever they are on is undetectable
  2. They have some weird agreement with the Uci about not getting caught

They saw in 2020 what Pogacar did and that nothing happened?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Fantastico